Mutt
by Bloody French Pasta
Summary: Arthur is a man working at an asylum full of crazy people and crazy things, but when a new patient comes in claiming to be a werewolf who could have known that the craziest things were soon to come. (Will probably be rated M for mature or sensitive themes later. Will get more intense later on.)
1. Chapter 1

**Well here is another story. Yaaaay. It is going to be a long one. I'm sorry for grammar and other issues, I've been busy and rushed on this because I don't want to take years on this darn thing. I'm hoping to maybe upload once a month or more but we know I'm not good at keeping that promise and shit happens.**

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Happy Place was a very calm place to stay, just as the name declared, it was a lot of people's 'happy place'. With white walls and people of all ages walking around in a game room or cafeteria, playing things like ping pong, checkers, or chess, it was a peaceful, sterile, place to stay. The people in the game room were very friendly and tended to be just like everyone else, smiling and waving at the people who worked there.

Of course, they were the nice ones since they were the minimum security patients in the asylum. The workers were just caretakers and monitors wearing white suits that seemed to match the walls. The only colors seemingly in the entire place were drawings done by some of the patients that were proud of their macaroni and marker artwork.

There were only four workers in total, being out numbered by the patients three to one. They were all male workers because they had issues with women workers in an all male patient facility, especially in the more dangerous areas of the asylum. At the moment two of said workers were standing against the back wall in the room watching over the happy patients, a man named Arthur and his co-worker Yao.

Arthur was holding a newspaper in his hands humming as he read over the unusual drama of the city. There had been a massive string of murders lately throughout the town, with victims of all age, race, and religion, but every single one of them looked like an animal had attacked them and they had bled to death. The authorities had absolutely no idea where to start with this case, some even saying they needed to hire a priest to bless the town, or others demanded to hire a monster hunter because of the brutality of the crimes. This time it had been a middle aged prostitute with her throat ripped out.

Arthur furrowed his thick brows over his green eyes, his blonde hair was a mess because, at this point, he didn't care anymore how people at his work saw him, they were just a bunch of loonies or close friends anyway. Yao was much better groomed, with his long smooth hair and his blemish free face. He was a Chinese man in his late thirties, but he tried to act like he was in his twenties, while Arthur looked like he was much older than he really was, twenty-three.

"They are really going to have figure something out with this. It seems like whatever is killing is just getting more brutal with how it is doing things." Arthur hummed offhandedly to Yao.

"I'm sure it's just another nut like Ivan!" Yao snapped and showed a tiny bruise on his wrist. "He waited until I came to his cell and he threw the tray out perfectly from the slot and hit me!"

"That is why they say stand to the side of the slot, not directly in front of it when you get to his cell." Arthur rolled his eyes at the tiny mark. He knew Yao was over reacting, but he also knew men like Ivan in the asylum were no laughing matter.

The bad patients, the ones that were actually crazed psychopaths and liked to hurt or kill people, were kept in a separate wing of the mental hospital. They were never allowed out and they were extremely dangerous and expensive to care for. A lot of people thought that because they were locked up for being 'mentally insecure' it meant that they were stupid, but that was as far from the truth as it got.

Ivan was the scariest and most dangerous inmate in the entire hospital. He was smart, incredibly smart, bordering genius. He had killed thirteen people in total and played a sick game with detectives and officers. He would cut the hearts out of all his victims and send them to the detective's office as a joke. At one point Ivan had been a doctor so everyone believed that he had made the deaths as painful as possible. Ivan always claimed that he actually knocked them out before he killed or did things to them because the screams hurt his ears and he didn't like to take medicine for headaches because they "hurt his tummy". When he was arrested and asked how he felt in an interview his response had been, "I'm getting free food, care, and housing. It's not like I went out much anyway, so why wouldn't I be just as happy as I was at home? I assure you, if I didn't want to be there then I could leave and nobody could stop me without a bullet to my head. This is all just a big game and I'm playing for my amusement." Ivan scared the hell out of Arthur because he would always make off hand comments on how his body looked, like he was thinking of slicing it up and dissecting him. He always had a creepy smile and Arthur wished they had put him to death instead of sticking him here where he had to come into close contact with him.

"If I had the chance I would get rid of him." Yao grumbled with his arms crossed across his chest as he leaned on the wall.

"Get rid of who?" A quick happy chirp of a voice pitched in from the doorway not five feet away. The hospital therapist was standing there with the boss damn near riding up his ass.

Feliciano and Ludwig were never really seen without each other. If Feliciano was somewhere, Ludwig was bound to be at least a room over to eavesdrop and watch the very happy man. Even if Feliciano was the therapist of the hospital, he was also trained to work as a daily caregiver, so when he wasn't with a patient he was helping Arthur and Yao feed or care of the patients.

Ludwig wasn't as happy as his friend, actually he never was. He was the manager and supervisor of the hospital, but once again, also trained for taking care of the patients. He was stiff and always watching and calculating everything that happened as if someone important were about to walk through the door for a surprise inspection. He yelled a lot to make sure that everyone was in gear, but after so long of listening to him yell everyone kind of figured that was just his talking tone, until Feliciano would pop off, "Watch your blood pressure Luddy." He would get flustered and help the other three with daily work after the comment. It seemed like everyone that knew them saw he had a major thing for the smaller man except for Feliciano himself.

"We are talking about Ivan." Arthur lazily waved like he were shooing a fly away from his ear.

"He is very scary!" Feliciano whined and looked terrified at the mere mention of the killer's name.

"He isn't that bad, he is just big and insane and he tries to scare people with that." Ludwig scoffed acting all tough and hard.

"But...you are big and aren't really scary…" Feliciano blinked slowly and Ludwig choked on air and tried to make some form of coherent sentence.

"Yes, but I'm not insane!" That was the best comeback he had for that. Yao let out a laugh and make fake goo-goo eyes and batted his lashes.

"Oh, Luddy are you trying to compete with the big scary guy? You know if he wasn't crazy he would be pretty good looking." Arthur burst into laughter at Ludwig's angered face and the angry yelling that followed, it was always fun to make him mad.

"Get your asses back to work and stop fantasizing over the inmates!" He boomed then he stormed out with Feliciano right on his heels giggling and smiling like usual.

Arthur rolled his eyes and tossed the paper he had in a trash bin.

"Ok, I'm going to do one more look over, feed the nut wing, then clock out and go home." He waved lazily at Yao and Yao just gave a grunt and waved him off.

Arthur walked around the asylum checking over all of the rooms to make sure nobody had anything that they weren't supposed to have. He found a bunch of pudding cups in Matthew's room.

Matthew was one of the best patients in the entire hospital. He was only in there because he had a mental breakdown after being forgotten by his entire family, and they constantly had to give him pudding cups to show that he wasn't forgotten. If he didn't think he was being forgotten he didn't even need to take his medicine. Arthur still didn't understand where all the pudding went, considering Matthew had told him once when he first came there that he didn't like pudding and he always left the room at lunch to go do something with the pudding but it was never thrown away in his room or anywhere else.

Arthur went from there to the yellow wing, with the patients that were locked up for most of the day but still let out to walk around or even go into the game room and cafeteria for a few hours. These patients had their own rooms that had comfortable beds, some board games, books, and a window that was big enough to see out of, but not big enough to get out. He checked them and gave them their medicines to keep them level headed and calm, if he didn't give the medicine they would start getting wild.

He then went to the red wing. This wing was for the most dangerous of the patients; killers, rapists, men that seemed to be straight from hell with orders from the devil himself. Arthur walked down this hall with mace he could spray into the meal slots if they decided to grab him when he gave them their food. They were never let from their soundproof cells unless it was shower day or time to clean. Their cells were meant for their own protection; all white soft pillow walls and floor, a pillow mattress, a toilet, no windows, and no way in or out but the door. Arthur pushed the food in through the slots quickly so if they were guarding the slot to attack he wouldn't get grabbed. He would only give them their food if they cooperate and gave him their flimsy rubber tray from the day before, if they didn't then they would miss dinner.

Ivan often missed dinner because he liked to stand at the back of his cell and throw the tray like a frisbee out the slot to hit the person there to give him his food. He had scared off a worker or two so now only Arthur and Yao remained to feed him. He didn't usually lash out at Arthur because Arthur liked to get pepper spray happy and that stuff got stuck in the soft cloth of the room so it lingered for a few days.

"Ivan, hand your tray out slowly...No sudden movements or I will spray you." He tried not to let his voice waver.

"What's the matter friend? You sound as if I'm after you." His voice was always unusually happy, like he found everything extremely funny. Ivan leaned down and Arthur could see his purple eyes flash slightly with amusement and malice after he handed out his tray.

"What is that smell Ivan?..." Arthur could smell something sweet and it made him nervous since he could only smell it when the slot to Ivan's room was open.

"What smell?" He chuckled softly and tilted his head. "Maybe it's just my natural smell." His voice was daring Arthur to question him. Arthur knew Ivan's real smell; a thick smell of timber and winter when snow freshly falls on a cold day. Ivan was taken out once a week by Ludwig with a taser to his temple so he wouldn't be able to attack or run without hitting the floor with the pain of being fried.

"Whatever Ivan. You better not be causing trouble."

"When am I not trouble, Da?" It was a deep rumbling laugh that sent chills up Arthur's spine. He tossed his food in and he didn't stick around to talk to the man after that.

Arthur clocked out with Ludwig so he could record his hours, changed into his normal street clothes, then started walking home. It was dark outside by time he started walking and the only thing keeping the street lit were the old lamps that were lined up on each side of the street. It was silent, not a single noise. The only thing Arthur could hear was his feet hitting the ground, and every now and then the sound of a soft wind blowing against him made a small flutter of his clothes reach his ears.

Arthur had to walk past a park that he lived maybe a block from and it never had any light on it, the street lights that would usually light the trees had been out for almost a year or more. It always made Arthur afraid to walk by it because at night it was always unusually silent around it and the string of murders recently didn't exactly help the situation.

A small rustle got his attention and he stopped and looked over at the park. He could have sworn he saw something move from the corner of his eye, but there was nothing there. He walked and heard the rustle again, it was moving when he did. Arthur slowly grabbed the pepper spray in his pocket and started walking faster.

A low long wail went through the air and Arthur froze up going wide eyed with goose bumps rising on his arms and the hair on the back of his neck stood up. It was a deep sad noise of a dog howl but it was to feral and sounded more like a large wolf. It slowly trailed off into almost a scream of agony. Arthur ran as fast as his legs could carry him to his house knowing there was no way in hell that was a human noise.

He got into his house and slammed the door before deadbolt and chain locking it. He let out a hefty sigh as he tried to get his breath back from running. He forced the noise out of his mind and he went to go make tea and have a quick bath so he could head off to bed.

He smiled softly as he read his favorite book in bed by candle light. He was on the last chapter and he already knew what would happen because he had read it at least a dozen times before, but it got better every time. When he finished the book he was content and ready to go to sleep, so he shut the book with a quick easy snap and leaned blowing out the candle with a short burst of air. He laid down and settled into his pillow, but off in the distance he could still hear the low wailing howl of whatever had been in the park. Strangely enough it sounded almost beautiful to Arthur, as long as whatever it was stayed at a good distance and didn't try to kill him.

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 **It's** **the first chapter and I'm ok with it, but I know it could have been better. if you find mistakes or anything please tell me so I can fix it. Thanks for reading, please review.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is chapter 2. Yay. Sorry if there are grammar problems because I've been working off of google and even if I reread over things over and over I still miss things. If you find something just tell me or don't mind it. Have fun reading. I'm sorry it took so long for the update.**

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Arthur groaned as he sat up and rubbed his temples. He hated getting up for work when he had the Saturday morning shift.

He tossed his cover off and stepped out of bed before going about the morning ritual; brush teeth, dress, eat some terribly burnt toast, grab some strong tea, then it was time to head out. Arthur got to work at exactly a quarter till eight and checked in with Ludwig.

Ludwig stopped him on his way out of the office and handed him a paper. Arthur looked over it then narrowed his eyes like he absolutely hated the paper, which he did.

"You are assigning me a patient?" Arthur said cautiously and then turned his glare on the man in front of him.

"Yes, I have my reasons for it up and don't complain about it." He grunted and sat down pushing his reading glasses up so he could go back to reading paperwork.

"What are your reasons apparently?"

"Because, Yao would give in to his flirting, I don't tolerate patient-worker relations, and the man flirts so much that he would probably molest Feliciano."

"What makes you think that I won't take that bait then?" Arthur huffed angrily and crossed his arms.

"Because you don't exactly have the personality that makes people want to flirt much with you, and I've seen you on dates with women, Mr. Gentleman. Now get out of my office and get to work before I dock the hours you're in here." That got Arthur from the room quickly.

He glared more at the paper labeled, "Francis Bonnefoy. Caretaker: Arthur Kirkland". Arthur stepped into the game room and looked around for the new face that would surely be somewhere since he was labeled as minimum security. Eventually his eyes caught the back of a taller blonde man's head.

Matthew was smiling and talking with him in French, which irked Arthur to no end because he couldn't understand a word of what they were talking about.

Matthew looked around the man and pointed at Arthur then said something quickly with a small laugh. As soon as he was pointed out Arthur's new patient turned around. He had stunning blue eyes that caught Arthur slightly off guard a moment.

"Bonjour. You must be Arthur. My name is Francis." The overwhelming French accent told Arthur he didn't practice his English much. Arthur also knew Francis' grooming bill would be a pain in the ass. They hired the local barber shop to take care of all the patients' hair needs, and he could tell Francis probably spent a lot of time in some form of salon.

The only greeting that came from Arthur's mouth was a short grunt. Francis raised a brow slightly and tilted his head a moment humming. It was a strong connection immediately; of absolute raging hate.

"Well, Do you understand why you are in here?" Arthur snorted out. "Do you know where your room is?"

"Yes, I do. You are quite rude, not exactly making a very good first impression." Francis crossed his arms and got a stance of a sassy highschool girl about to PMS rant.

"Oh, I'm sooo sorry! My name is Arthur. Can you say that? Ar-th-ur."

"Your British accent is atrocious. It makes me want to just go gag."

"Can you repeat that? I can't understand you past the frog in your throat."

It took a total of a minute for Arthur and Francis to be in each others' faces, snapping and yelling loudly. The yelling got all eyes on them, and soon enough Feliciano was out waving wildly at them. Ludwig was of course at his side like always and waved the two yelling men over with a serious glare on his face.

"Mr. Bonnefoy! Hello!" Feliciano smiled softly and put a hand on Francis' shoulder. "Come with me to my office please."

"Why? Who are you?" Francis tilted his head, yet the little man didn't seem to pose any threat or sign of aggression, probably because he was a ball of neverending joy.

"Because, I have to give you some medicine. I'm the Happy Place therapist and I would like to get to know you a little bit more! Follow me please." Feliciano waved softly for Francis to follow and the angered Frenchman calmed and followed him.

As soon as the door shut to Feliciano's office, three rooms down the hall, Ludwig turned on Arthur.

"Mr. Kirkland, to my office. Now." It was monotoned and as soon as Ludwig turned and started walking to his office Arthur swallowed thickly feeling a knot in his throat. The fear of being fired slowly set in as he followed the usually mad German.

The door clicked behind Arthur and Ludwig went around his desk to sit down in his large rolling chair. He slowly rested back into the soft leather and rocked himself a moment, staring at Arthur with a piercing look that went all the way to his very soul.

"Yes sir?" Arthur knew that if he needed to suck up now would be the time to do so.

"Did you read the sheet I gave to you?"

"No, I was too busy actually looking to find him."

"Well, I want you to keep a very close eye on him." He hummed slowly taking a pen and started to click it over and over.

"Why?" Arthur pulled the sheet over Francis from his pocket and started reading over it. "What the hell!" Arthur looked in disbelief at Ludwig.

"What?" Ludwig hummed looking at the pen as he slowly twirled it between his fingers.

"He believes he is a werewolf?" Arthur looked startled and shocked as he reread over the paper multiple times.

"Indeed, but there is more to it. When they caught him and took him in he claimed that he believed he had hurt somebody while in that state of mind. I personally believe that he is the man behind these killings, with how brutal the murders are lately it wouldn't surprise me that the person killing would believe they were some form of beast."

"Why don't we have him in max?" Arthur slowly stared in horror at the paper then up to Ludwig. "If he is that dangerous then he shouldn't be out among the others."

"If it were up to me I would have him in maximum. The issue is there are no such things as werewolves and he has not shown any real form of danger to the others, so for now he is in for believing in something insane.

I need you to keep a very close eye on him. If he shows any kind of aggression or he says anything that might point to him as being the killer come to me immediately. Learn about him on a personal level; family, home, what he likes, what he dislikes. I want you to know as much as you can about him. If he really is who I believe there won't be as much of an investigation if we know things about him already." Ludwig placed the pen in the neat row of pens and pencils on the left corner of his desk next to the massive pile of papers. "Understood? I'm relying on you, Kirkland."

"I understand sir." Arthur bowed his head slightly in an agreement.

"Good. You are dismissed." Ludwig gave a wave like he was swatting a pest away from his breathing room.

Arthur stepped out and stood against the wall when he went back to the game room. Francis was already sitting there next to the chess board by himself. Arthur couldn't help but look over him now and wonder about what Ludwig had said.

Could this man really be the killer that had been shredding people out on the street to the point the bodies weren't even recognizable? He wasn't big and burly, yet not a thin twig that couldn't defend himself if he were to be jumped. His face was soft and kind at the moment and he didn't look like he would be the person that people would cower to if he just came up, but neither did Ivan. Arthur hummed softly remembering how calm and happy Ivan had looked when he walked into the hospital. Arthur had felt bad for him, until he heard him talking about cutting a woman to bits. Francis very well could be a killer like Ivan and just have a good poker face.

Arthur noticed he was staring when he saw amused blue eyes locked onto his. Francis gave a small wave and he had a slightly crooked smile that radiated entertainment. He waved him over a bit and Arthur hesitated before he slowly, cautiously, approached.

"What?" It was a quick snip from Arthur.

"You were staring at me. Are you perhaps enjoying my charming looks?" He laughed carelessly.

"No, I was just watching how stupid you looked playing chess by yourself."

"Oh, So you want to play?"

"No! Why would I ever want to play against you in a civilized game of chess?"

"Are you afraid?" The question caught Arthur off guard and he narrowed his eyes.

"Why should I be afraid of you?"

"I never said you were. Are you afraid of losing to me in a 'civilized' game?" A smirk slowly played out on Francis' lips.

"I would beat you any day of the week in a game of chess!" Arthur shot a hateful glare and he slowly got more riled with every second he stood there, forgetting what Ludwig talked to him about for a moment.

"How about you play me in a game. We will see who beats who." Francis lightly tapped the board with his finger. Arthur sat across from him accepting the challenge.

"Fine, I'll make this quick."

"Are you in a rush?" Francis raised a brow slowly as he questioned.

"I will be clocking out in about thirty minutes." Arthur grunted and moved his pawn.

"Then I'm sure you'll beat me by then." Francis moved his own in return.

A few minutes before it was time for Arthur to leave the Brit laughed as he took out Francis' king.

"I win. I told you I would win." He rubbed it in Francis' face.

"You won because I let you."

"You just don't want to admit that I'm better."

"We will see about that." Francis looked at the clock and chuckled. "What a shame. It's time for you to go home." Arthur looked back at the clock and grunted in surprise.

"Yes, I suppose it is." He gave one last smug grin and he went to Ludwig to clock out and head home.

Francis was laughing to himself as he watched the Brit go. He was competitive and had plenty of spice to his attitude, he liked that.

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 **Well I'm working on it. School is beating me down so I'm working hard to even get what I have done. Thank you for sticking if you are reading along.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry It took so long everyone. School and stuff says no free time. Thanks for sticking around if you are still reading. I was in a slight rush to finish this chapter so I'm sorry if it's crappy or to fast. Strong language.**

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Arthur sighed tiredly as he clocked into work. He had stayed up a little too late celebrating his little victory over the Frenchman, and now he regretted the amount that he drank during said mini-party.

Strolling into the game room he saw Francis sitting at the chess board with a small smirk playing on his lips.

"Well, you look like absolute shit today. Is this a normal look for you, or did you just decide not to sleep?" Francis snickered a bit.

"You don't look any better, frog-face." Arthur hissed a bit and Francis gasped like it was the worst insult he had ever had thrown his way, only to roll his eyes a second later.

"I want a re-match. I want something, so I won't just be playing around with you today, I just wanted to let you know." He looked at his nails after buffing them slightly on his light blue plain outfit.

"You know I will kick your ass AGAIN! Why even bother with a re-match?" Arthur scoffed in amusement and irritation at how Francis acted as if he could just beat him at everything.

"Because, I want to knock you off your high pedestal...I would also like an extra serving of pudding today because the rest of that mush is disgusting."

"You are challenging me...for a cup of pudding?"

"Oui, I am."

Arthur sat there a moment thinking of how he could screw Francis over if he lost.

"If I win you won't get any pudding. Deal?"

"Deal." Francis smirked and let out a small chuckle.

"I'll play you after I get all of my work done."

Arthur went about his usual rounds in the asylum. He had to give medicine to the mid-level patients and give the red wing patients their morning meal. He was a bit late in giving meals to the red wing so they all figured they were either forgotten again by Yao or somebody had made Arthur mad again so they wouldn't get food that morning.

Arthur handed trays into the slots. At the very first room the man snatched the plastic tray and started wildly slapping the old tray and the new tray together for a few seconds before he handed the old tray out. Arthur had expected it, for some reason every time he was late the first or second person he gave food to did that. The noise of the two trays slapping together echoed throughout the entire red wing so Arthur just figured that it was some form of bell for them to know that the food was coming.

He gave food to the rest of the inmates and he had to wait on Ivan a moment because the big Russian seemed to be doing something important for a few seconds before he took his tray.

"Arthur." He greeted a second after he took his tray and his mouth was overly full as he spoke.

"In a rush to eat Ivan?" Arthur scoffed in disgust. He enjoyed pointing out that Ivan was like an animal in every way possible. He heard the thick swallow and hiccup noise. As Ivan swallowed whatever was in his mouth then he heard the tap of the foam spoon on the tray, there was nothing that Ivan could do with a styrofoam spoon.

"You could say that." Ivan hummed practically choking the food down because of the disgusting taste. The room still had an odd smell of sugar which worried Arthur. The red wing didn't get sweets; no candy, no cakes, no pudding. Arthur left the red wing with that on his mind.

He went to the minimum security area again and took care of everything there; giving them their breakfast, handing out the small amount of meds that they needed, just kind of chatting with them about how their days were, giving Matthew his morning pudding to show him that he wasn't forgotten, daily duties in general.

Once he was done in that area he went right back to the game room and he sat down in front of Francis.

"You ready to lose?" Arthur snickered at him softly, ready to win again.

"You know the deal correct? I win I get extra pudding."

"Yes, but if I win you don't get any." He smirked and grabbed his pawn ready to move.

"That sounds fine to me." Francis smiled and he started the little desk timer next to them as soon as Arthur moved his pawn.

In a total of fifteen minutes Arthur was sitting in stunned silence staring at the board as Francis moved his queen into a final position. "Check mate." The Frenchman's voice was calm and smooth as he said the simple phrase.

"What?...No, I want a re-match!" Arthur said in disbelief and reset the board and Francis smiled and reset the clock.

"Very well. This will have to be the last game because lunch is in about an hour."

"That's fine because I know I'm going to beat you!"

They played again and this time it only took about ten minutes before Francis once again put Arthur on the spot.

"Are we done with this now?" Francis cackled quietly deep in his throat as Arthur looked confused at the board.

"Fine…" He looked confused at why he was beat twice in a row, like he had never played before when the day before he had beat Francis no problem.

"Don't look so devastated. It's just a game." Francis waved his hand some in the air like he was trying to get rid of the bad atmosphere. He was concerned at how upset his caretaker looked about losing.

"How?...How did you win so fast? I'm good at chess, but you just ran me over…"

"When you have no family, friends, or anyone to talk to you have to entertain yourself in some way. All I had was a chessboard to play with, so I played myself every day almost all day long. I got really good at playing after years of practice." Francis shrugged and gave a light pat to Arthur's shoulder.

"Oh...It looks like I owe you that pudding." Arthur felt awkward when he realized that Francis had just given him a piece of slightly personal information. He didn't want to pry too much into his life, even if he was supposed to be learning more about Francis.

"Oui, you do." Francis smirked and laughed as Arthur left.

Arthur went to the cafeteria and quietly asked the ladies there for an extra cup of pudding, claiming that it was for Matthew and they handed it over to him with a small plastic spoon. They were used to Yao and Arthur coming and asking them for extra pudding for the boy so they didn't question it. Arthur gave a quick thanks and made his way back to Francis while holding the pudding cup.

"There is your bloody pudding." He handed it over and sat down watching Francis open the small container and eat in content. "How exactly did you get so good at chess again?" Arthur leaned back in his chair with a curious look on his face.

"Oh? Well, my family died when I was young so I bounced around from home to home when I was just a boy, then I guess people got tired of having me in their homes so I was out on the streets until I could find a job. I didn't have any friends, because who wants to be friends with the filthy boy that lives in the alley?

Anyway, I lived on the streets for a year or two and I got a job for an elderly woman. She was very kind and seemed to love everyone and she always took in little strays like me. She didn't care about my background as long as I didn't get in trouble and I helped her around her little store…" He seemed to be off in space as he spoke about the old woman with fondness, like a person would speak about their own grandmother. "She died about five years ago. She was the one to introduce me to the game and I would play with her every night before she went to bed before she died...After she died I found out that she had left me her home.

I played chess every single day after that for hours and hours, playing as if she were still alive. I never did beat her…" He closed his eyes with a small laugh. He may have laughed but Arthur could hear it was forced and painful.

"You miss her…" Arthur whispered softly watching the man in front of him. He was touched that a man that seemed so snobbish could be so...respectable. That brought up another question.

"How did you end up in here?..." Arthur raised a brow.

"That's a good question...The best answer I can give you is that I'm a monster apparently…"

"I'm not quite following you. What do you mean a monster? I know your sheet said that you thought you were a werewolf."

"I trusted the wrong person and they went telling others something I had told them years ago. I was a child and didn't know how serious of a thing I was telling to another boy that I thought was my friend. I've yet to turn into any monster here have I? To the rest of you I'm a monster. None of you have any proof that I am, or ever claimed to be, a werewolf. You all are going off of the word of some man who came running saying that he caught me acting odd."

"So do you actually believe that you are a werewolf?"

"Have I been giving you that impression? I know I can be quite a beast, but I didn't think you would really consider me an animal." He winked and laughed deeply.

"You are certainly hairy enough to be half dog." Arthur felt heat travel to his face. "I haven't really seen you acting out of the ordinary, so I suppose you have a point…" He hummed softly looking away.

"ARTHUR!" A booming voice echoed across the room and Ludwig was standing in the doorway to the room beckoning for him to come over. Arthur gave a short nod to his boss then turned back to Francis.

"I need to be off. I will continue this conversation later." He got up and he walked over to Ludwig.

"Having a good break over there?" Ludwig's voice was rough and it was clear that he wasn't to happy about something.

"I'm sorry sir? Did I do something wrong?" Arthur was staring to get really nervous.

"No, I just wanted to tell you that we will be discharging your patient over there. The detectives that were looking into his case came back and told me that there was no significant evidence to keep him pinned up here."

"We are discharging him this fast?" He blinked in surprise. "It's only been maybe two or three days since he arrived."

"No. We still have to fill out all of the paperwork and put him through the registry. He will be released at the end of the week." Ludwig grumbled.

Arthur looked back at Francis who had set up another chess game and was playing himself.

"Where will he go when he gets out?"

"Back to where ever he came from."

"I see…" Arthur thought over everything that he had just been told.

" _ **Well, my family died when I was young so I bounced around from home to home.**_

 _ **I didn't have any friends, because who wants to be friends with the filthy boy that lives in the alley?**_

 _ **The best answer I can give you is that I'm a monster apparently…"**_

Francis' words echoed in his head as he stared at him, thinking about how he would be going back home to an empty house, no friends, and no family.

"Get back to work Kirkland." Ludwig barked out and Arthur jumped back into reality.

"Yes sir." He went back over to Francis.

"How was the ass kissing session?" Francis smirked looking up from his pawns.

"He still has it occupied by a stick. Thanks for asking." Arthur snorted and they shared a short laugh.

"You are being released. You should be out by the end of the week is what he told me." Francis froze a moment then looked at him in surprise.

"I'm being released? Already?..."

"It surprised me too, but at least you get to get out of this hell hole."

"...Right…" Francis' voice was quiet as he sat there slowly pushing the pieces across the board. Arthur stared at the chess board and the scattered pieces across it for a moment.

"Francis...I want to have a new bet" Arthur looked back up to Francis' face.

"Hm?" He didn't look up from his game of moving his knight around to take out the little pawns.

"For the rest of the week you will play me in chess three times a day. I'll play you when I get to work, before lunch each day, and before I leave to go home." Francis looked up to him with a raised brow.

"And?"

"If I win a single game then you have to meet me at the park three blocks from here this weekend after you get out. You'll have to talk to me and tell me more about this old lady you were talking about."

"What if you don't win?" A small smirk slowly formed.

"Then once you get out I'll have to tell you more about myself when we get to the park." Arthur huffed and looked away.

"I think I will accept this challenge." He let out a laugh and Arthur snorted but had a tiny smile.

"Well I have to keep an eye on you somehow. Maybe I could teach you how to be a better chess player." Arthur said in a matter of fact tone.

"We start this evening then?" Francis grinned widely.

"Before I go home."

 **XOXOXOXO**

"Checkmate. Checkmate. Checkmate. Checkmate. Checkmate."

Arthur heard that phrase over and over from Francis' lips. Every day, three times a day. Each game slowly got longer and longer, dragging out hours of Arthur's and Francis' free time. Every day Arthur listened to the cocky Frenchman win and say that stupid phrase that ended the game. Checkmate.

"Are you ready for the last checkmate Arthur?" Francis smirked slightly as Arthur sat down across from him one more time. Arthur was silent as he looked at the man.

Francis was no longer in his patient clothes, the plain long sleeved shirt and plain loose pants. He was in the clothes he arrived in, a tighter gray shirt that had the sleeves to his elbows and a pair of loose black dress pants.

"I'm ready." Arthur started the timer and Francis moved his pawn first in their final game of the final day that Francis would be there.

A full two hours later the timer was stopped.

"Checkmate." The words left Arthur's lips like he had practiced saying them every day to himself. Francis looked up at him as he stood grabbing his jacket to leave.

"Good game."

"You let me win didn't you."

"No." Francis smiled gently. "You won fair and square. Good game."

"Park. Tomorrow. Noon. Don't be late or I will kick your ass." Francis smiled at Arthur's words.

"Same to you brush-brows."

"Stupid frog."

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 **Hope you liked this chapter. Review if you want. If you find any mistakes just tell me. Thanks for reading.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry it took me so long. School, work, and crazy things have happened. This is more or less a little more of an info chapter because I felt like it and I felt bad for leaving everyone for so long.**

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The sun was shining with a cloud here and there floating across the sky. The grass and tree leaves rustled and waved in a light breeze that swept through the park, cooling things with its' gentle movement. It was a beautiful day outside and perfect for people to be walking along the path around a small pond in the center of the park.

Arthur was sitting on a bench right next to the pond watching the ducks swim around in front of him, hoping to get some food. He had a deep frown with his brows together in an angry glare at the cute little ducks. He wasn't mad at the ducks, but he was sure as hell pissed at a certain Frenchman.

Francis hadn't shown up for their meet and now Arthur was feeling stupid for ever trusting that stupid pervert of a man. Tears were threatening to spill over and he felt hurt and played. He slowly looked around making sure nobody was close before he looked down and he closed his eyes biting his lip letting tears slowly fall.

"I should have known...He was just a flirtatious idiot...He was only using me for entertainment…"

"Who...was?...Sorry I'm...late. I slept in…"

A rose gently tapped Arthur on the shoulder making him jump in surprise. He turned and looked back wide eyed. Francis had a rose in his hand and he was out of breath from running. Arthur quickly hid his teary eyes and cleared his throat.

"You bloody frog! I thought you had forgotten me!..."

"I didn't forget you. Why were you crying? Don't cry…" Francis sat next to Arthur in shock. He held out the rose to him and he slowly he wrapped an arm around his shoulders. Arthur slowly glanced at him and he looked at the rose that was being held out. He got a dusting of a blush before he quickly straightened up and he cleared his throat.

"I wasn't crying. I just have allergies!" He snapped out quickly and he took the rose and he put it in his coat pocket with a small pout before shrugging Francis off him.

"Whatever you say. I'm here now so what would you like to do?" Francis couldn't help but get a cocky grin. "Had I realized you loved me already I would have set a more romantic place to meet." He snickered out

"I don't love you! I just don't like being forgotten and ignored after I thought that I had possibly made a good friend! Anybody would be upset and I would be just as upset if it were some one else." He spat out angrily then calmed down to a simmer. "I'm not sure. How about we just sit and talk. Maybe get to know each other a little better? You told me a little about yourself so maybe we can just talk and learn more?" He seemed to calm down now that he knew Francis hadn't lied to him and left him alone in a park like an idiot.

"Well, what would you like to know about me?" Francis raised a brow slightly resting back into the bench.

"Where would you like to start? I would like to know anything you want to tell me I suppose." Arthur relaxed and crossed his legs with his hands placed neatly in his lap.

"You already know a little...perhaps I should start in the beginning. As you are aware I am an orphan. When I was small, about three, my mother died, a violent murder. She had been shot through the heart by a silver bullet with a cross etched into it and they took her head... The police believed it was work of a madman, but they never caught whoever killed her in cold-blood.

She was beautiful...I have a painted photo of her. She had beautiful blue eyes, like the purest stream of water, and she was thin, skin as pale as the moon itself, hair black as night…" Francis closed his eyes and Arthur stared at him in fascination.

"She sounds like she was very beautiful."

"The most…" Francis let out a breath. "My father on the other hand…" Francis suddenly looked enraged. "My mother had the majestic soul of a lion or wolf...my father...was a rat…" He spat on the dirt.

"What do you mean?"

"He was nothing more than trash! He beat me every single day after my mother died. He blamed me for her death...He had disgusting dirt covered, greasy, blonde hair...his teeth were always yellow and black from tobacco, I swear his skin was made of slime and newspaper…" Francis shivered with a look of absolute disgust on his face. "Luckily, he drank himself to death not long after she died. I was an orphan around five or six."

"That sounds awful…" Arthur gently set a hand on his shoulder. Francis gave half a smile to him.

"I went from home to home. I actually stayed with a very close friend of my mother's. She and my mother were almost inseparable, she got pregnant and died giving birth to two baby boys. I couldn't stay there and the boys were sent to go live with their grandfather. I went from home to home after that for a while until the old lady took me in. She treated me like true kin, I loved her with all my heart and I protected her from everything I could, everything except the call of time." Francis let out a pitiful laugh. "She had known my mother apparently and she said that she saw bravery in me, something that very few had and a strength, power, and will that I should always be proud of."

"I...I don't know what to say…" Arthur bit his lip slightly. "That's very sad, yet sweet." He gave a pat to Francis' back. "I can see what she meant though."

"Thank you…" The Frenchman smiled charmingly at him. "What about you? I don't really know anything about you."

"Ah, yes. How rude of me." Arthur cleared his throat slightly. Francis waited patiently on him.

"I never knew my parents. From what my brothers said they were insane and my mother died soon after having me from a mysterious case of blood loss. My father was burned at the stake I believe when I was around one? I don't remember him all that much because he stayed out of the house or in his office all the time. When he died my brothers took care of me. I was the youngest and treated the worst, beating and slim pickings on the food that they got. I had to go out and somehow find my own food. It wasn't too bad. It was life, I got used to it…" Arthur shrugged and looked at the sunset. "I was the only one of my brothers to go to school, I got my nursing classes done and I started working at The Happy Place."

"I see. Do you see your brothers often?"

"No, we don't talk anymore. We got in a fight over who got the most out of father's will and apparently he had left most of his things to me. They kicked me out and refuse to talk to me."

"That's a real shame. They are missing out on something great." Francis smiled softly at Arthur. Arthur couldn't help but get a shy blush and feel slightly flattered.

The sky was starting to darken as the sun set farther down below the buildings of the city. Francis and Arthur sat and talked about twenty minutes longer before they got off the bench. Arthur had learned that Francis spent his time reading, cooking, and even dabbled in art, while Francis had learned that Arthur knew wild ways to make and drink tea, couldn't cook to save his life, and enjoyed poetry and large novels.

"I had fun today. You were very interesting to speak to, Bonnefoy. If you ever feel the need you could stop by my place for a quick cup of tea."

"I prefer fine wines, but that sounds nice." Francis smiled and he looked to the stars coming out. "It is getting really late. Would you like me to walk you home?"

"No. I only live a few blocks from here and I can handle myself just fine." Arthur's ego immediately blocked that option 110%.

"Are you sure? It would be dangerous to walk alone at this time of night." Francis looked worried for him.

"Of course I'm sure. Don't worry. Maybe stop by after my work sometime and we could have a meet like this again." He waved to him and started walking home. Francis gave a weak wave back as he walked away.

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 **I hope you all enjoyed the more info and some major hint drops that lead into later chapters. Review if you feel like it. I was really tired while I was editing, so I am sorry for any crap grammar or things that make no sense.**


	5. Chapter 5

"Damn it...I should have taken him up on the offer to walk home with me…" Arthur was speed walking through the dimly lit city streets. He wasn't afraid of the dark, but it wasn't safe to be walking around, especially with all the unsolved murders. Arthur was trying to get home as fast as he could before the more dangerous crowd came out.

He listened to his feet hit the stones of the sidewalk and he looked around for anyone. He didn't see anyone else as he walked, making him relax slightly and slow down. The only thing he could hear in the night was the striking of his feet hitting the cobblestones and the random noises of the night; crickets chirping, leaves in the wind, now and again the flutter of a moth or a bat flying close by.

Close by there was talking from the park he was strolling past and he lifted his head to maybe hear some of the words, but they cut off. It made him feel mildly uneasy: the feeling of being watched wasn't exactly a comfortable one. Choosing to pick up his pace away from the park, Arthur quickly made his way away from the voices in the dark.

"Well hey there!" A man's deeper voice flew up from behind him.

"Hold up, we just want to talk with you!" A second voice chimed in, playful but demanding.

Arthur was quite sure that he didn't want to stop and talk to the men that had suddenly came from the park he had been trying to get away from, but he politely responded back, still speed walking.

"Sorry, I'm in quite a rush to get home so I can't really stay to chat." He didn't even glance back until another voice came into the picture.

"Wait a minute, I know you! You are that bastard nurse that was always rude to me!" That confused the hell out of him. He had to just kind of turn his head to glance. There were three men following him. None of them looked like they took very good care of themselves, but the one in the middle did look very familiar.

He remembered him to be one of the old patients of Happy Place. The man had been one of the people that probably needed to go in and stay. Arthur remembered being placed as his nurse and how often that man would cuss and scream about how he wanted to kill everyone for putting him there. Not only that, he had been discharged only six months after his arrival for good behavior toward others somehow. He certainly hadn't been changed in his ways; only terrifying Arthur all the more.

He had to get away as fast as he could and he knew running would be his only chance. Arthur turned and started running as fast as he could towards the closest buildings he could find hoping and praying that somebody would see them and call for help or maybe even let him in so he could hide. There was no way he would be able to make it to his house, if he did they would know where he lived then. His only hope was to find somebody that would help him get away. The three men stayed right on his heels, just as motivated to catch Arthur as he was to get away.

A twist on a road here, another turn there, and Arthur found himself getting closer and closer to the lights of a distant suburb that he could just make out through the thick trees of the park he had been trying so hard to avoid. He tried to pick up the pace but the darkness beat him and he tripped on a branch and slammed on his face and belly; knocking the air out of himself with a pained wheezing noise, only seconds later to let out a pained grunt as he was roughly grabbed.

"How about you give us all the cash you got hm?" One man smirked as he roughed him up and dug in Arthur's pockets.

"Allen, you'll be lucky if you get anything off of him." The second man smirked and laughed slightly before shoving Arthur back into the old inmate. "What do you think, Vanya?"

The big man smirked grabbing Arthur by the throat and lazily squeezed. While Arthur gagged he shoved him over into the ground.

"I think he makes more of a boy toy, don't you?" He spoke slowly as if he was processing what all he could do to Arthur. It sent chills all over Arthur's body, just imagining what could happen if he didn't find a way out.

"Do you still have those opiates on you, Shanghai?" Vanya asked, grabbing Arthur by the hair lifting his head up from the dirt.

"Of course I do." The man, now known to Arthur as Shanghai, opened his coat to reveal a row of syringes and pockets full of little baggies in the lining. "Maybe a sedative to go with it?"

They all laughed at Arthur's panicked face as he started to cry from fear. He let out a loud scream as shanghai started pulling the drugs from his coat and getting them ready for use; however, Vanya covered his mouth hushing him with a grin. Arthur thrashed the best he could freaking out as he was forced to hold still. Feeling the sting from a needle in his neck made him try to scream louder for help.

"Those will make him calm down in a minute or two. Just hold him still." Shanghai smirked as he removed the needle. "I'll give him the good stuff when he settles down more." Arthur started to feel drowsy after a moment, but the panic only seemed to be growing in him. "Allen, go make sure nobody is around before we get started on this." Shanghai waved Allen off. Allen rolled his eyes and snorted.

"You aren't exactly my boss now are you." It was a firm statement. "I want my turn with him to, and I know if you all get him to yourselves Vanya will kill him."

"That's why I would be going first." Shanghai raised an eyebrow pointing at Arthur.

"Who says either one of you are getting anything of him? I'm the boss so you two are going to back off. I call the shots, and I say that I'm going first while you both do look-out.

A loud noise got Arthur's attention and his eyes lazily scanned the woods. He hoped that maybe somebody was there to help. He prayed to anything that would listen that something would save him from this. What he saw made his blood run cold.

A set of eyes were staring out from the trees; a deadly glowing silver in the moonlight scattered through the trees. From laying on the ground Arthur couldn't properly gauge how tall the animal was. Going off of the tree that Allen had just been leaning against and how far it was away, it's shoulder would have been a solid four to five feet from the ground if it were crouched or standing. He couldn't quite understand what he was seeing. It looked like a bear almost until it went to its hind legs and ended up looking more like a dog mixed with a bear since the paws weren't the same and its legs were built more like a canine with a stocky strong body leading to a thick neck. The fur on it was a dark brown color and seemed to be unmatted but messy at the same time around its neck slowly tapering shorter as it got to the face. The smell wasn't pleasant by any means since it quite literally just smelt like a muddy wet dog mixed with stale trash. The face was long and slim like a hounds face but was shorter in the muzzle leading back to a clear defined muscled jaw. It looked like an animal that had been an unusual hybrid that wasn't meant to be there in the city. It would have been a pretty animal but it was awkward moving like it wasn't used to existing so it made it look more terrifying and ugly like it didn't belong.

It bared its teeth and made a growl that reminded Arthur of a chainsaw more than any animal he had ever heard. It made Allen jump a good foot into the air and turn around right before whatever the thing was lunged forward and ran at him making him scream and backpedal fast.

Shanghai rubbed his eyes thinking maybe it was a bad hit of something he had taken earlier but when he realized it was real he turned and started running with Allen only to scream when he tripped and fell. It took less than ten seconds for the screaming to stop when he had his windpipe crushed and slashed by the back claws of the thing still chasing Allen. He had been ran over and had his throat stepped on by the animal that probably weighed 800 pounds with razor-like claws.

Allen was caught and started screaming bloody murder when he had his arm bitten into and the beast shook its head back and forth breaking it in multiple places. It swung and flung Allen into the small amount of woods letting him bleed in shock. Arthur screamed when blood splattered his face making the beast turn its attention on Vanya and him. The sedatives made it where Arthur wouldn't be able to run and he started crying harder from fear.

Vanya pulled a large hunting knife and took a stance knowing there was no running from whatever this was. It lunged and Vanya stabbed cutting it across the face making it scream in pain. It was all the more terrifying that the scream sounded between a man's scream and a wolf's howl. Vanya lunged again and tried to stab in its side or chest but only got bit on the arm and swung around like Allen had. The knife fell to Arthur and he grabbed it ready to use it when it came. Vanya fell and the beast went down and grabbed the back of his head in hits jaws and bit down hard with a sickening crunch of teeth breaking bone.

It turned on Arthur and advanced slowly with its face bleeding and blood coming off its jaws as it let its mouth hang open. Arthur was shaking but things started to go black and the last thing he saw was green eyes reflecting himself crying before everything blurred to black.

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 **Sorry It took so long to update! I had a lot of other stuff going on. I don't own anything but the story.**


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